Living in a Dream
by Arlyn
Summary: Aeris and Sephiroth meet in the Lifestream after years of isolation.
1. Default Chapter

Lonely, she was so very utterly lonely

Lonely, she was so very utterly lonely. For years she had watched over and protected her friends on earth. Watched as they laughed, played, loved, hurt, cried, watched as they lived their lives. Oh how she wished she could be with them, with him. 

She had watched him the most. It hurt more than she cared to admit to see them together and so happy. Still, no matter how much it hurt she still protected and helped them in every way she could. No matter how much she longed to be with them, or anyone she was resigned to watch.

Observe and protect the life on the planet. It had been her duty since she first entered this place, no it had been her duty the moment she summoned Holy. How could she have known that the being that summoned Holy was the one destined to be the planet's guardian. Under normal circumstances the guardian would have lived a full life and been content to live in the Lifestream in the complete solitude that she was now living in. 

She had had no contact with another being since the elders had told her of her duty. She hadn't even been able to speak to her mother. As for her father since he was human he had already been reborn on the planet. The elders had cut of her communication from the Promised Land so that she would not be "distracted".

No being lasted long enough in the Lifestream before being reborn to find and talk to her. Once when she called on the Lifestream to save the planet from Meteor the people who had died saw her on their way on to being reborn, but the Lifestream would never again get that close to people. So she would never have to chance to say even one word to another living being.

Slowly she got to her feet and stretched out. When a persons mind, or spirit, enters the Lifestream their mind created a sort of imaginary world that they lived in until they were reborn. If they happened to wander near another mind they would leave their world and enter the other's world. 

She had eventually learned how to change or adapt her world to how she wanted it. She could look at the real world anytime she wanted but she had created a crystalline pond that she would look into whenever she wished to check up on the world. Reeds grew around the edges of the water before it rose into smooth clean rock. In the rock there was numerous spots where one could lounge while gazing into the pond or at the distant horizon. Eventually the rock gave way to great expanses of fields. The fields were filled with hundreds of flowers. Even the slightest gust of wind would blow delicate petals into the air. The fragrant scent of the flowers could be smelt from a great distance away. 

In one direction the fields gave way to Limestone cliffs with many caves honey combed into them. But the caves were not the dominant features of the cliffs. A magnificent waterfall cascaded down the cliffs and into a beautiful shimmering lake below. From the Lake flowed a medium sized river. The river wound through part of the flower fields but mostly through a grand forest. Trees of all sorts grew so high up that it hurt to look at them for too long. Eventually the river flowed into a vast ocean. Shells littered the pure white sand that stretched as far as the eye could see in each direction. Eventually the land at the edge of the sand rose up into sheer cliffs with many places to climb into and sit while gazing out onto the ocean. Dark rocky outcroppings stuck out of the cliffs here and there along the beach. The rocks extended a short way out into the water. The entire place was beautiful. There was not a single slightly browned blade of grass in the entire land, every one of the flowers were perfect and in bloom, the sand was all a clean white, you could see the bottom of each of the deep pure lakes.

There was one thing missing though. No matter how hard you searched you could not find a single living creature. No a fish in the sea, no beatles in the ground, no birds in the sky. There couldn't be. All the living creatures had been reborn onto the planet and you could not put a living, thinking creature into any land without it having some sort of spirit. 

So here she was day after day in her beautiful imaginary world without so much as a worm as a friend. She never heard the sounds of life, never heard the chirp of a cricket, nor the rustling of a small bird of rodent, or the powerful roar of one of the planet's powerful creatures. The only sounds she heard were the soft crashing of waves, the sound of the flowers or trees in the wind, or the water crashing down from her waterfall.

Many days she simply lay on her back a few feet away from her pond and gaze up at the clouds in her sky. It was one such day when she was lying on her back and gazing up at the sky without any sense of the time that was passing when the clouds began to darken slightly. That was odd. She almost never had it rain in her small world. The clouds rapidly began to darken and soon she felt a cool drop of water on her arm. She quickly jumped to her feet and began to look around her. A slight breeze began to blow her auburn around her and into her deep emerald eyes. A flurry of petals enveloped her as she raised a hand to brush her hair from her eyes. When she turned and looked off too her side her eyes widened in shock. She didn't notice as her hand slowly fell to her side.

Cold. It was really cold. 

"_Where am I?"_

A pair of glowing green eyes shot open. Flames rose into the sky and went on as far as the eye could see. The surrounding air was thick with smoke and pollution. The ground was littered with sharp rocks and shards of glass, and he was standing right in the center of it all.

"_Where is this place?_"

Despite the roaring fire he was unbearably cold. As he tried to make sense of the situation he slowly began to trudge through the flames that strangely did not burn him. For a moment he remembered nothing. He stopped dead in his tracks as his memories came flooding back. 

His lonely childhood filled with cold experiments. Becoming the most celebrated general in all of Shinra's history, then Nibelheim, Jenova, Meteor, killing the cetra, and finally Cloud killing him. How did his mind become so twisted that he believed a monster was his mother? What had happened that made go so completely out of his mind? Where had he come up with the idea to try to kill so many people, to try and kill the planet? Jenova, somehow she had invaded his mind. That had to be it he could never remember actually coming up with those horrible ideas. She had made him trust her then she twisted his despise for the people who had shunned him into a vile hatred for everything. 

All of those horrible things that she made him do. This must be his punishment, surely this place must be hell. He turned and took in his surroundings. All he could do was accept his punishment. 

It seemed as though years passed by, maybe they did, but eventually he took a step forward, then another, one after another until he reached a fast walk. He walked and walked and walked and walked. After another unknown stretch of time his boots began to shuffle on the charred earth. He began to stumble, soon he fell to his knees unable to rise he stared hopelessly at the sky.

For years it went on this way walking till he could no longer move. Then a while later rising to his feet again to walk further. What compelled him to walk like this? He really couldn't find any reason. Maybe it was the hope that someday he would find his way out of this, this hell of his. He was sure it was his because in all of his walking he had never encountered another living soul of any kind. 

Again he was staggering along trying to get in just a few more steps before he lost all of his strength. Once again he collapsed and began to stare at the sky. What he saw puzzled him. There were stars in the sky. Never in his life had he thought something was so beautiful. They were there shimmering above the towering flames in a clear velvet sky. 

After gazing at the starts for what seemed like an eternity his felt a renewed sense of strength. He rose to his feet and again began his journey to nowhere. Slowly almost painfully slowly the flames seemed to shrink and the sky began to lighten. After a while the glass began to disappear from the ground. There was even grass, though very dried and obviously dead, there was even a faint glimmer of sunlight!

He froze in place, it felt as though if he took another step he would be back in the fiery hell he had awoken in so long ago. His eyes began to grow heavy and soon he closed his eyes from what he now considered the most beautiful sight in the world.

Oh how wrong he was. Even before he opened his eyes he could smell a sweet floral scent, he could feel the soft lush grass beneath him. As a soft breeze brushed across his face his eyes fluttered open. The sky was filled with soft gray clouds and a light sprinkle of rain had begun to fall. 

He sat up and surveyed the area around him. Words could not describe how beautiful it was. Flowers flooded his vision nearly as far as his eyes could see. He could only gaze in wonder at the beauty that now surrounded him. A sudden movement to his right caught his eye. He spun to his right to see what is could have been.

A distance away a figure had suddenly leapt up from the flowers. From where he was he could see that the figure was definitely feminine. Long auburn hair seemed to float around her. He could not see her face for she had her back to him. A gust of wind blew a cloud of petals into the air clouding his vision slightly. She turned to face him while brushing an errant lock of hair from her face. In an instant their eyes locked. Even from where he could feel something almost pulling him to her.

************

It was impossible, there was not a single living thing in the world that could make contact with her. But here, somehow, was a man standing in the middle of her field. At last someone, something, to talk to, someone to relate to! She waved her arm at him to catch his attention in case he wasn't looking at her already. A moment to late she realized who this person was. The long silver hair, the black clothing, the eyes that she knew would be a glowing green. Sephiroth.

A choking fear overwhelmed her. How could he be here he was dead, no so was she. He should have been reborn. He couldn't be here he just couldn't. What was he going to do to her? What could she do? Panicked her eyes shot around searching for some place to hide. All there was were flowers. Gusts of wind brought thousands of petals up to cloud her vision. All she could think to do was run

************

Running? Why was she running from him? She must be like everybody else who has ever met him, ever seen him. But he had to he had to see her he had to talk to somebody. He had endured times of solitude, but never anything like this before. He had to at least touch her and make sure he was not hallucinating.

Running as fast as he could he soon began to gain on her. He was within a few feet of her when they reached the beginning of the lake that was at the base of the waterfall. The spray from the cascading water formed a mist that enveloped them both. She finally whirled around and faced him like a caged animal. Somehow he wasn't shocked at what he saw.

It was her, the Cetra. He could not remember her name but he certainly remembered her. Many days while he walked he had wondered why he had killed such a beautiful creature. She didn't need to die, he really hadn't wanted to kill her. Now she was standing before him. Obviously scared out of her mind. Still, he wasn't convinced she was real.

"Please, tell me you are real,"

His smooth deep voice trembled slightly from misuse. She appeared stunned for a moment but then she spoke.

"What are you going to do to me?"

What are you going to do to me? The words stung much more than he had expected them to. They made sense though, last time she had seem him he had been trying to destroy the world. He had been nothing short of a madman. After years of solitude not a single thought about hurting her had ever crossed his mind from the moment he saw her. He viewed this land as heaven, and it was compared to the place he had been for such a long amount of time. 

If this place was heaven then surely she must be an angel. He looked at her now standing at the edge of the water staring at him with deep green eyes wide with fear. Her auburn hair framing her face then cascading down her back in a loose braid. He slightly loose pink dress blowing slightly at her bare ankles. 

Suddenly she turned and dashed into the water and tried desperately to escape.

************

She was quickly becoming hysterical. First he had asked if she was real. Then he had begun to look over her with an odd look of admiration. Oh no he is going to rape me! Panicked she tried to think of what she could do. She was cornered against the lake the only way she could escape was through the water. Her mind made up she turned and fled in absolute terror.

As she struggled through the water she felt an arm slip around her waist and pull her back. She screamed in terror. She felt him forcibly grab her shoulder and turn her to face him. Tears began to burn her eyes as she looked up at his face. There was an odd slightly desperate look on his face. The look though, was not that of a rapist but that of a lonely man who just wanted to be near someone.

"Please, please don't run……I…I just want to talk with someone"

Suddenly her own loneliness overwhelmed her. How many nights had she wished for someone to talk to. Someone just to see to confirm that she existed and was not some phantom floating through the Lifestream. Now in some cruel twist of fate someone was here, but that person was a cold blooded killer.

He had let go of her shoulders and had let his hands fall to his sides.

"I….I'm….sorry"

Her eyes widened in shock as she looked at him. What had he just said? He was sorry. Could it be possible he was no longer a cold-blooded killer? Was it even a little bit possible that she could talk to him. That she would finally not be so utterly and completely alone? 

She stared at him for a long time as a soft rain fell into the warm water. His shimmering silver hair fell around his face and flowed down around his long muscular body. His beautiful pale green eyes were staring at her without even the faintest glimmer of lust but with the same feeling that was in her eyes, hope. She couldn't help but smile at the thought that she would no longer have to be alone. She sprang forward and threw her arms around his neck. He jerked away for a second but relaxed and eventually gingerly wrapped his arms around her. They stood there like that for a long time with the silent mist enveloping them.


	2. chapter 2

Lonely, she was so very utterly lonely

For the first time in years, possibly ever. Sephiroth sat on the sands of a beach. For some reason he was perfectly content with simply staring out at the ocean, watching each wave break on the sandy shore. Never before in his life had he ever appreciated the beauty of things, even after spending his entire childhood inside a barren laboratory.

Next to him, a very polite distance away, sat a woman who he had killed. She was sitting with her legs crossed at the ankles and leaning back onto her hands. After their first meeting by the waterfall they had awkwardly made their way to the beach. Now they sat on the soft white sand without saying a single word. It was almost humorous how they had both wanted to talk to someone so badly but now that they had the chance neither of them could say a word.

Why he needed to talk to another person so badly he really couldn't say. Initially he had laughed at the punishment that he had been given. Punished to walk in some hell without ever being able to talk to another person had seemed like a joke to him when his entire childhood had been spent in virtual solitude. But as time had passed he had realized more and more that the solitude that he had been confined to was much more absolute than that he had experienced as a child. As a child he had been in contact with other beings, though not very kind ones, he was still able to talk to them and to learn from them. Even Hojo, thought the man had done nothing but experiment on him Sephiroth had occasionally talked with the man. His childhood had been nothing compared to the punishment.

Suddenly a thought came to him. If his punishment was to be isolated in complete solitude, why was had he come in contact with Aeris? Was this really what he thought it was? He turned slightly to look at Aeris. She was a Cetra, she probably knew.

"Where is this place?"

She turned and looked at him with a slightly puzzled look.

"Don't you know?"

"I thought I knew, but since you are here I guess I was wrong,"

She continued looking out at the ocean, but seemed to pause as if in thought.

"This is the Lifestream, this is the world I created in my mind,"

The world she created in her mind? To say that was confusing was putting it mildly.

"What do you mean, the world you created in your mind?"

Now she turned to look at him. What did she know that he didn't?

"You really don't know where you are do you?"

Of course not. He certainly wasn't going to tell her that though. How was he supposed to know. All he knew was that he had woken up in some cold fiery hell.

"No"

She looked at him for a few seconds then, out of the blue she smiled. He couldn't help but think that she had a very pretty smile. 

" Come on lets go for a walk this may take a while to explain to you", she said this as she got to her feet and walked back towards the river.

He couldn't help it as a slight frown crossed his face. Did she think he was some sort of child, that he wouldn't be able to understand. Still, he wanted to know where this place was. So he got back to his feet and walked to catch up to her.

Since he was in better shape than she was and his legs were longer is didn't take long. Once he got to her side she took a deep breath then began explaining.

"Once a spirit dies their spirit joins with the Lifestream. A normal person's spirit is reborn into another living thing. The Cetra are different though. Because they are not of the planet they still die but their spirits can not be reborn. So they all created a Promised Land. The Promised Land is a world created by the minds of the Cetra Elders. Once a Cetra dies their spirit is found as quickly as possible then escorted to the Promised Land where they will dwell with their fellow Cetra for the rest of Eternity."

"Why aren't you there with them. You're a Cetra right?"

Their walk had led them into the forest alongside the river. Aeris bent over and picked a small pink flower from near the river before continuing on. She fiddled with the flower while she talked.

"Yes but I summoned Holy. There is sort of a rule that whoever summons Holy is the one who is destined to be the planets guardian. To make sure that I have no distraction to my duty I was sealed off from the Promised Land and therefore all contact with my fellow Cetra."

That explained why she wasn't with the Cetra but it didn't explain _where_ this was.

"I'm getting to that", she said as though she had read his thoughts.

"When a mind, or spirit, enters the Lifestream it subconsciously creates a world for it to live in, otherwise there would be nothing and your mind can neither comprehend that nor handle it. So most people have their own little world for a little while before they are reborn. The Cetra all created their own world. Since I am not in their world, the Promised Land, my mind created it's own. After a time I learned how to control it and how to change it to my liking.

So we are in the Lifestream in a world created for our minds for us to live in,"

That all made sense. But he hadn't been reborn, and if it hadn't happened yet it probably wasn't going to happen. He certainly wasn't a Cetra, he had figured that Jenova had only said that to manipulate him and make him her minion. What was it she had said about why the Cetra couldn't be reborn? It was because they weren't from this world. So because he had Jenova in him he would never be reborn and he would never be allowed into the Promised Land. So if Aeris hadn't summoned Holy and been assigned as the planet's guardian he would have been forced to wander the Lifestream alone for the rest of Eternity. 

They had stopped in a shaded spot along the side of the river. Aeris was standing a short distance away with her hands folded around the flower looking off into the distance. A few of the sun's rays that broke through the tree's canopy danced across her face.

Why had she summoned Holy? She probably knew about what would happen to her. Sephiroth stood there his arms at his sides watching as the water moved the pebbles at the bottom of the stream. It struck him all at once. She had done it because of him. He had summoned Meteor and the only way to defend the planet was to summon Holy. She was stuck in this place away from her family because of him.

Never in his life had he felt so guilty. Here was this beautiful woman who he had taken almost everything important from. First he had taken her life, he chance at happiness on earth, then he had taken away her Promised Land. That was the worst. He had taken away her eternity, her chance at eternal happiness with her family and fellow Cetra. How could she still stand to look at him, to think about him, to allow him into her world. 

He looked up from the stream to find her looking at him in a strange way. He was suddenly so overwhelmed with feelings of guilt. He opened his mouth to say something but nothing came out. Shaking his head he inadvertently took a few steps back. He had to get away.

" I…I have to go"

With that he turned and walked off in a random direction, not caring where he ended up as long as it was away from her. He walked off leaving Aeris to look at his back

***************

After her explanation Aeris had begun thinking about her mother and wondering about how many other family members she had in the Promised Land. She also had begun to wonder about how Cloud and the others were doing. She still thought about him often even after the years she had spent as the planet's guardian. She had finally faced the fact that she would never be able to talk to them again. She had basically given up on the thought that she would ever be able to talk to another being again. But still there was a faint glimmer of hope that some soul would wander into her world and she would be able to talk to them for a just a few seconds. Now it seemed impossible that there was someone her, someone who would probably be around for the rest of eternity.

Of course it was just her luck that this person was Sephiroth. Of course she knew exactly what he had done to her in the past. She had been mulling over all of that on the beach. She looked at him now as he stared into the river at something she couldn't see. His gloved hands hanging at his sides. His hair framing his face and body. Even from the angle she was looking at him from she could see his delicate features and the glowing of his pale green eyes. Aeris couldn't be sure about what kind of person he was internally but it was obvious that externally he was a beautiful one. 

It surprised her when he suddenly looked up at her with a look of fear and realization. He looked like he was trying to say something but nothing came out. He said he needed to go then turned and left. Aeris was slightly stunned. She simply watched him go until he was out of site. Why had he left? The expression on his face had been one of guilt, there was no doubt about that.

After walking in the direction he had left in for a while there was still no sign of him. He was in her world that she had created in her mind but she still couldn't find where he was. After walking for a while longer she found herself back at the beach. Immediately she spotted footprints in the sand. There was only one set so they had to be his. 

He was sitting in the sand a short distance from the water staring sightlessly at the horizon. The wind was blowing his hair out behind him. Out on the horizon the sun was just beginning to set. Finally Aeris decided to walk up and sit down next to him. She was only a few feet away but he didn't seem to notice her. She decided it would probably be best if she just remained quiet. 

After a while he took a deep breath and sighed.

"Why do you let me stay here after all I have done to you?"

Aeris looked over at him while she was thinking about what he had just said. Why? Well she had no reason not to let him. She couldn't hold a grudge against him for all eternity for things he had done in the past. From what she could tell he seemed so be genuinely sorry for what he had done.

"I see no reason why I shouldn't", she said honestly. She really couldn't see why she should hold him to crimes he had done in the past and was remorseful for.

"Could you ever forgive me for what I've done to you."

"Sephiroth—,"

"I didn't know what I was doing, Jenova, she toyed with my mind she made me do things without thinking", he looked like he was quickly becoming hysterical.

"Sephiroth---," 

"I..I wasn't using my head, I….I don't know what I was doing"

"Sephiroth! I forgive you! I realize you weren't in complete control of yourself. I can forgive you for what you did. I don't want to hold you to your past deeds"

He looked so relieved that Aeris couldn't help but smile. It seemed like it was infectious because even the corners of Sephiroth's lips curled ever so slightly into a smile.

For a long time afterwards they both just sat in the sand watching the sun that never seemed to set as it sat just on the edge of the horizon. Eventually the sky began to darken and the stars started to appear in the velvet sky. The moon rose over the ocean and cast a silver glow on everything it touched. 

As Aeris sat on the beach watching the stars and the moon slowly traverse the sky a feeling of joyfulness slowly crept into her heart. For the first time in what seemed life forever she was happy. There was finally someone she could be with, to talk to and to things with. Even though Sephiroth wouldn't have been her first choice he was certainly better than nobody. As she looked at the waves Aeris realized that she had never gone swimming. 

Knowing she was about to make a complete fool of herself but feeling as thought she had to do something or her heart would burst, she walked over to in front of Sephiroth she stood in front of him until he looked up at her. He just looked at her and blinked, when he did that she realized how much his eyes really glowed in the dark.

"Lets go swimming!"

"What?"

Smiling she said it again, "Lets go swimming. I've never done it before and I need someone to teach me. You're the only one here so you have to teach me"

He looked torn between what he wanted to do, so Aeris decided for him. She bent down and grabbed his hand. He looked slightly nervous but didn't jerk away from her touch. Grasping his hand with both hands she took a step back and threw all her weight back trying to get him to his feet. It didn't work but he still got to his feet. Aeris turned and dragged him to the edge of the water.

"Hmmm. Well we don't need these" , She said as she kicked off her brown boots.

Sephiroth looked down at his own boots and frowned. Slowly he took them off then looked up at Aeris. She was already almost knee deep in the water. She turned and smiled at him.

"Come on! The water's great!"

Not wanting to get his cloak wet he took that off too, leaving him in only his black pants. Feeling very uncomfortable he stepped into the water after her. He eventually made it to were she was. The water was waist deep on her but only about mid-thigh on him, only now did he realize how much smaller she was than him. 

"Any tips on swimming?" she asked cheerfully as she began to head deeper into the water.

After thinking for a moment Sephiroth realized he didn't really have any good advice about swimming.

"Don't panic just stay calm and you should be able to figure it out", he couldn't help but feel stupid as he stood there in waist deep water in only his pants. What did it matter. Aeris was the only other person here and she was with him making more of a fool of herself than her was. Taking a deep breath he followed behind her.

Aeris was a smart woman and caught on quickly and began to do a modified breast- stroke into deeper water before turning around and stopping next to him in shallower water.

"That was fun. I've never done this before. The water was never clean enough in Midgar and once I left I never had a chance to. She swam a little closer to Sephiroth before stopping and looking at him.

"Come on swim a little it's fun"

She couldn't help but laugh a little at his expression. He looked so out of place. As she looked at him she couldn't help but stare. He was so handsome. Without his shirt on she could see his body. Every muscle was perfectly formed. He wasn't big and bulky, he was just perfectly built. She didn't realize she was staring until he reached out and touched her shoulder.

"Are you okay?"

Feeling very glad that is was dark out Aeris blushed furiously

"Oh yes, I'm fine"

A short while longer they headed in from the water and back onto the beach. They found a spot on a smooth rock to dry off on. The rock though, was just big enough for both of them and they had to sit next to each other so close that they were almost touching. Weather this was an act of her subconscious or just a coincidence Aeris wasn't quite sure, but she wasn't about to protest. For the first time since she had arrived in this place Aeris was tired. She didn't notice as she leaned her head on Sephiroth's shoulder and slowly drifted off to sleep. Sephiroth feeling uncomfortable but feeling like he should wrapped his arm around her waist. Soon he realized he too was a little tired. He drifted off to sleep with the sound of the waves. 


	3. chapter 3

It was a dark and twisted place. Not a single thing had the slightest splash of color on it. Every single object in view was twisted almost beyond recognition. There were animals, but they were far from being alive. Each creature was not only deformed beyond belief; but each one was either floating in what appeared to be some sort of containment tubes or was glazed with a hard shiny substance. 

Other than the few deformed creatures there was not a single natural object in the entire land. The ground was nothing but a cold metal grill. Towers of shapeless metal reached into a sky of wires. Each wire eventually ran back down into one of the containment tubes or a metal tower. 

In the midst of the land stood a man who was equally as twisted as the land that surrounded him. He observed his surroundings with a sick sense of wonder. Greasy clumps of hair Hung in front of his scratched glasses with twisted frames. A clanking sound resounded throughout the entire area with each of his footsteps. He stopped and hunched in front of one of the containment pods.

A twisted smile overcame his grotesque features. He began to laugh softly as he slowly turned in circles taking all that surrounded him. As he was laughing he turned and focused on a single containment pod. Without warning the pod suddenly burst open. Glass and a clear slimy liquid flew everywhere. An aberration with tentacles flailing out everywhere slowly stepped out, saliva dripped from fangs as it let out and ear shattering roar. The second the man's attention withdrew from the creature it froze in place. He burst out into an uncontrolled fit of laughter

It wasn't a pleasant sound by any means. The pitch was high and irritating it grated on a person's nerves. But that wasn't the main thing that made it so irritating. It was the feeling of insanity behind it. One could tell that there was a great madness in it, some malicious plan that was yet to be implemented. One important thing to know was that this man hadn't lost his mind. He was still perfectly aware of what he was doing and what was happening around him. His insanity was as twisted as everything else that surrounded him.

************

It was a winter wonderland. Soft flakes of snow swirled around in the air before falling onto the blanket of white that already covered everything in site. Great pine trees rose into the air, their limbs weighed down with piles of snow. The trunks of each tree were so huge that three people would not be able to wrap their arms around them. The sky above did not have the typical dark stormy gray of winter, but a softer gentle gray. The forest of pine stretched to the sand of a gray tumultuous ocean. The smaller trunks of the pine trees littered the beach. In the distance snow covered mountains dominated the horizon; their peaks stretching for the sky. Near the ocean there was a small open field with a small river running from a frozen solid lake. Next to the lake there was a medium sized log cabin. A small boat was locked into place next to a small wooden pier. A small plume of smoke curled from the chimney. 

A young woman walked out of the forest into the clearing. Her cheeks were slightly flushed from the snow. Her parka was wrapped tightly around her small body, her hood was secured atop her head, soft fur lining framed her face. As she walked her breath crystallized and formed small clouds in front of her face. She looked around obviously filled with a sense of pride with what she saw. 

After taking in her surroundings she shivered slightly and shoved her bare hands into her pockets. Soon she came to the door of the cabin. It looked just like any other door, but it did not look as new as she knew it was. Numerous nicks and scratches covered it giving the dark wood and aged look. 

She drew one hand from her pocket and rapped lightly on the door. Within seconds the door was opened by her silver haired friend. The first thing that she noticed was that he was dressed differently than usual, come to think of it she had never seen him in anything other than his black soldier uniform. Now he was wearing a loose fitting black sweater and a pair of black slacks. He still wore boots, but not the same knee high ones as before. The boots he wore now only went a little past his ankles and went much better with his current outfit than the other pair would have. She was a little surprised but pleased none the less. In her opinion her looked much better than before, more relaxed or comfortable. 

"Is it too cold out? You look freezing", there was a slight amount of worry detectable in his voice, "Please come in" 

He backed away from the door and gestured for her to enter. She smiled and entered the cabin. There wasn't much in the way of decoration. Really there wasn't anything at all. There was a living room with a fireplace with a very comfortable couch across from it, next to the couch was an armchair. Down the hall there was a bathroom and two bedrooms. There was no kitchen in the entire place, it made the house seem somewhat off.

" I decided not to put in a kitchen because we really don't need it here" he said as he gave her a quick tour of the small house. 

"Oh it's fine, I like what you did to the place" she looked up at him and smiled hoping he would understand what she meant.

For the past couple of week she had been showing him how she controlled and modified her own imaginary world into what she wanted it to be. Eventually he had insisted on going back into his world and changing it to something that would be more comfortable and pleasing to the eye. When she had said she wanted to come along he had insisted that she stay in her world until her was finished. She couldn't be sure if he had done that because he wanted to surprise her, which he had certainly done, or if he didn't want her to see the world he had originally had.

"Thank you, I really didn't make the whole thing up, its based on a house that was a short distance away from Icicle Village." He shrugged as he sat down in the black leather armchair. Aeris took a place on the sofa, right in front of her the fire was burning brightly, she was beginning to feel a little warm.

She took off her coat and draped it over one of the arms of the sofa. They both sat there looking into the fire. An uncomfortable silence filled the air. Sephiroth shifted in his chair then cleared his throat.

"So, how are things going on the planet?" he asked breaking the silence.

"Oh, things are going just fine, no problems what so ever. Everybody from AVALANCHE is doing great, they all seem to be very happy with their lives." 

"That's good"

Again they both fell into silence. Now that they had figured everything out it seemed like there was nothing to do and nothing to talk about. So they both sat there, while a nearly tangible tension filled the air. Aeris glanced over at Sephiroth and saw that it looked like he wanted to say something. He noticed her look.

"Aeris?"

"Yes"

"Do…Do you ever think about, or wish that you could be reborn on the planet. Or that you could go back?"

Of course she did. Nearly every day she had wondered what it would be like if she could go back, resume living the life she had left behind. To be reborn without any memory of the life she had, without any thoughts and worries that now plagued her.

"Yes, I suppose so", _I suppose so! She thought about it a little more than that!_ At first she had wished she could go back till it almost hurt.

"Oh"

"Yep"

Another period of silence followed, only this time she couldn't even look at him. Thought his question had seemed spontaneous she knew better. He had obviously been thinking about it for a while. Did he think she blamed him for her not being able to return, or for not being able to live out her life? Did she? No, she couldn't, if she was going to blame anyone it would be either Hojo or Jenova. They were the ones who set him up to become what he did. 

"I wish I could go back", he said it so matter-of-factly Aeris wasn't quite sure what he had said.

"Huh?"

"I wish I could go back, you too. So we, or at least you, could have the chance to finish your life."

__

Yeah, but wishes don't seem to ever come true for us. Aeris had never been a very cynical person, actually a thought like that had never crossed her mind. She had always been the one full of fond hopes, always looking up and at the bright side of things. Yet still grounded in reality. That had been one of the traits many people liked in her. Perhaps those years in isolation had given her some new traits that she wasn't yet aware of. Aeris continued to ponder this as she stared sightlessly into the fire.

The rest of the evening went on like that. A heavy silence hanging in the air with an occasional comment here and there. Eventually Aeris drifted off to sleep on the couch. Sephiroth stayed with her a while longer to make sure she was asleep before heading off to his room.

Outside a full moon had just risen over the tops of the trees, bathing everything in a soft light. The light shone in through Sephiroth's window onto his face as he tried to fall asleep. Uncomfortable with the light on his face Sephiroth would twitch every now and then before finally giving in the turning his back to the window.

As the moon set a thick fog began to envelop the land. The leaves on the farthest trees began to shrivel and curl. The pure white snow became mixed with dirt and turned into a thick slush. The entire outer woods began to take on a much darker image.


	4. Sounds the Night

                _Crunch, crunch, crunch.  _Dead and dying leaves crunched under foot as a dark foreboding figure slunk though the forest. Behind him every living plant wilted and died. The only sounds were the sharp crunching of the leaves and the audible sounds of the forest behind him dying.  

  He continued on through the dying forest until he came to the edge of a clearing.  At one end of the clearing was a beach, its sand and water pure and glistening under the starlight, untouched by his presence.  At the other end sat a modest cottage next to a frozen lake.  Everything in the small area was unaffected by him.  This wasn't his doing that was certain.  Could it be another being's doing?

The thought of there being another thing in this strange place elated him.  Oh the things he could do with such a thing, be it a man or some other creature. In a place like this, where his imagination was the limit, where scientific rules no longer applied, his mind overflowed with the things he could inflict upon this new toy in the name of science were unlimited.

With a renewed purpose he set out towards the cabin.

************************************************************************

Aeris tossed and turned in an uneasy sleep.  Her dreams were wracked with the cries of the planet.  Never in her entire time after her death had she ever heard the planet. She had assumed that she simply could not hear it in this place.  But now she heard it, and it was warning her of something.  The warnings were getting louder and louder by the minute, but she couldn't figure out what the planet was trying to tell her.  Sephiroth? Was something wrong, had he changed? No, she concluded, it couldn't be that.

Then what was it?  The cries were getting more and more dire by the minute.  In her sleeping/dreaming state Aeris began to get nervous.  A final heart rending cry tore Aeris from her sleep.  She bolted strait up on the couch.  Her breathing was labored and rivulets of sweat ran down her forehead.  

Terrified from the fear that the planet had planted in her Aeris' eyes darted around the room. The fire had burned down to coals and provided the room with only the faintest of glows.  All of her senses were raised, her ears picked up every little sounds in the room, her eyes immediately darted to the slightest flicker in the room.

The only sound in the room was her breathing.  As her breathing quieted she became aware of another sound, breathing.  She held her breath to make sure it wasn't just her.  The rasping breaths from the other side of the room continued.  She stared hard into the darkness where the sound was coming from.  She thought she could make out the shadowy outline of something in the corner near the door.

The thousands of horrifying possibilities rushed through her mind.  This must be it; the danger the planet had been trying to warn her about.  It was too late now; it was here! _Oh what am I going to do! Oh no oh no oh no. _A sense of panic pervaded Aeris' thoughts, making her sick to her stomach.  

_Sephiroth! Maybe her heard this thing enter! He was a soldier he can save me. What if it already got him while he was asleep? He was probably on his way to save her right now he probably had sensed this thing as it neared the house._  

Her thoughts raced a mile a minute as she stared into the darkness.  The figure began to move closer to her, closer to the light.  What if it was some type of hideous creature that the planet had rejected and sent to live in this afterlife?  Something like Jenova, from some far off planet, which its soul was unable to return to?

The figure slowly advanced.  Aeris could hear her heart pounding as she lay frozen on the couch.  The figure that finally stepped into the dim light was worse than any alien creature, worse than any other thing Aeris could have imagined.  As recognition slowly crept across her terrified mind, it was too much for her to handle.  She let loose a scream that shattered the still room as she covered her head with a blanket.  As Aeris laid under the blanket, willing him to go away, she felt his icy hand on her leg.  She screamed again as he knocked her unconscious.s

************************************************************************

Sephiroth bolted up in his bed.  An eerie silence filled the air.  Immediately he sensed that something was wrong.  In and instant he was at the door with his masamune in hand.  Silently he opened the door.  His perfect night vision showed him that there was nothing in the hallway.

As he crept silently down the hallway a bloodcurdling scream tore through the air.  _Aeris!_  Sephiroth dashed to the end of the hall only to see his worst nightmare knock Aeris unconscious as she screamed.  _Hojo._

The filthy rat like man looked up and met his eyes.  A sneer came to the Hojo's sickly pale face.  

"It looks like I have _both_ my favorite toys back now hmm?" he said to himself.

Sephiroth pushed the shock aside, " What are you doing here?" he said venom dripping from every word.

" Why isn't it obvious? I'm collecting some new play toys. I need something in this place that I haven't created with my own mind, something real. I think you two will do nicely," he stated matter of factly, as if Sephiroth should find absolutely nothing wrong with what he proposed.

" Get away from her" Sephiroth said as he advanced toward Hojo, sword ready, "Now."

"I wouldn't dream of it," Hojo said as he moved to pick Aeris up.

In the blink of an eye Sephiroth was beside Hojo, he threw him into the wall on the opposite wall like a toy.

" I said, Get away from her", in an instant Sephiroth was once again beside Hojo. But this time he was ready. As Sephiroth moved in for the final blow, Hojo countered with his gun.  The bullet tore into Sephiroth's right shoulder, but did not hinder his swing of the masamune.  The blade tore into Hojo like a knife into butter. Hojo managed to fire another round, this time it hit Sephiroth square in the chest.

Despite being nearly cleaved in halve Hojo rose to his feat and staggered to the door.

"I'll be back, don't you worry. I _will_ get you, my precious toys."

Stood threateningly watching Hojo leave. It wasn't until he could no longer feel his twisted presence before he allowed himself to sink to the floor.  A glance at his chest revealed a hole from which a river of blood flowed.  Holding his chest he struggled over to where Aeris lay.  Once he was leaning against the couch he looked down at his hand, entirely soaked in blood.  His vision began to blur as he felt lightheaded. He watched as Aeris slowly opened her eyes.  The last thing he heard was her scream his name.


	5. Awakening

**Chapter 5- Awakening**

Aeris stared down at Sephiroth.  He had miraculously recovered after being shot in the heart.  She could remember watching as he sank to the floor by her.  At first she had been too panicked to think. The fear from the attack and the shock of seeing Sephiroth pass out on the floor next to her had been almost too much for her to handle. It wasn't until she had seen his shallow breaths that she had been able to recompose herself and get him into the bed.

Now she looked down at him, it was just barely after dawn and his wound was completely healed, as if it had never been there.  She didn't quite understand how, she had some ideas as to how it had happened.  As for now she was simply content to watch him as he slept.  

There was something about him that she couldn't quite describe that made her want to look at him. Sure he was good looking, but so were many other men she had met; and she had never been compelled to look at them the way she could look at Sephiroth.  She felt as thought she could look at him for hours and never tire of it.

Seeing him so close to her, close enough to reach out and touch, seemed surreal.  It added to the feel of the entire place.  Everything was how she wanted it, but something was out of place and it made everything seem slightly off, just enough to make her slightly uncomfortable.

She continued to gaze at Sephiroth and think about these things until his eyes began to flutter open. Noticing how close she was she quickly scooted back her chair a bit then shifted her attention elsewhere, she didn't him to think she had been doing nothing but looking at him nearly the entire time he had been out.

"Ugghh" he moaned slightly as he slowly propped himself up on and elbow.

Aeris casually turned her head towards him as if she hadn't been expecting his awakening.

"Feeling better?" she asked nonchalantly.

"What happened?" he questioned as he looked down at his chest, touching the spot where the bullet had pierced his chest," I mean, there's nothing wrong"

"Is that a problem?" laughed Aeris; she couldn't help but find his confusion amusing.

Sephiroth responded with a glare.

"Ahem", she cleared her throat, plastering a serious expression on her face.

"Do you know what happened?" Sephiroth asked, still confused, and a bit angry at Aeris' childish behavior especially concerning such a serious subject.

"Oh I have my theories, I can't be sure if they are right or not," she stated, quickly returning to her playful mood, she felt somewhat elated that he was awake and healthy again.

"Would you care to, oh, tell me what's going on here? I know I heal quickly, but not this quickly," he watched as Aeris' mood rose by the second, her changes in mood were almost always visible on her expressions.

"Well, as far as I know, this place is controlled entirely by us, or whoever else is around here.  Anything we see, hear, do, even what we look like is controlled by our own minds," she explained.

Sephiroth took a few seconds to think this over. "So from what you believe anything I want to happen, happened. Including the miraculous healing of my body?"

"I guess so." Aeris couldn't' help but be fascinated at the way Sephiroth looked when he thought, he got so absorbed into his own mind. She found herself staring at him again when he spoke again; this time what he had to say disturbed her.

"So we can't die"

************************************************************************

Hojo retreated back to a distance where he once again had complete control over his world.  He was in a sulking mood today.  He hadn't wanted to be cut in half by that troublesome boy, but it had happened.  It went against everything he had figured out about this strange place. Once he thought he had everything figured out something like this had to come along.

Well at least he had the chance to get some new things to play with. The last ones he had come upon had been particularly weak minded. It had taken hardly any time at all to force them under his control. Hojo looked to the deformed creatures in the glass containment cages scattered about his domain. All he had to do was come up with a plan to weaken their minds, after all that's all this place is about.

************************************************************************

Sephiroth looked up at Aeris, he could tell she was desperately trying to retain her good mood. He felt bad for bringing her down, but he wanted to know if it could happen.

"Ha, where would we go anyway? We are already dead" Aeris laughed as she hopped up out of the chair and left the room. Sephiroth could tell that she was upset.  He had probably taken away the only hope she had of leaving this place, of going on to an actual afterlife.  

As bad as he felt about Aeris he was too absorbed in his thoughts to chase after her.  Hojo was back, and he was definitely not sane or friendly.  He had tried to kidnap Aeris and take them both for experiments. He had nearly succeeded, if their minds were the key to power in a place like this, and he had succeeded in knocking the two of them unconscious. Sephiroth shook his head to rid himself of the thought of what nearly happened. How could Aeris just shake it off like she did?

Aeris, he had a feeling she was no longer in the house.  Hopefully she hadn't gone to far. Sephiroth rose from the bed to begin his search for her. He wasn't quite sure what it was that made him want to make her feel better, there was just a feeling he got when he saw her sad.  It had to have something to do with the way she was always so happy. That had to be it.

After searching her out for a while, he found her seated on a log watching the churning ocean, crying.  Sephiroth's heart sank like a brick. He hadn't thought it was that bad,_ I guess her emotions are not as easy to read as I thought_.  Slowly he walked up beside her and sat down.

"Aeris?" he asked uncertainly after a long silence, filled only with her stifled sobs.

"Yes?" she responded as she wiped tears from her eyes, a fake cheery smile on her face.

Actually seeing the tears in her usually sparkling green eyes made Sephiroth feel almost sick, maybe she hadn't taken things as lightly as he thought.

"Come on Aeris don't lie, I know you're not happy," he stated, regretting what he said as Aeris burst out into a fresh fit of tears.

"Oh Seph!" She gasped in between sobs," I just don't know what to do anymore! Nothing is right in this place….I…and….I thought that I was alone, then you came….I thought I was safe, then…then he came. And now, we hardly know how this place works, and the planet will hardly even tell me anything. And, on top of all of that, we are stuck here aren't we? I'll never see my mother…any of my friends, I'm stuck here all alone!" She chocked out between fits of tears then completely broke down.

Throughout her entire confession Sephiroth just sat awkwardly by her without a clue as to what he should do.  _"Without any of my friends"_ did she consider him a friend? He hadn't known that she was so broken up about not seeing anyone. Well he couldn't blame her, who would want to spend the rest of eternity with their killer? Now, she got to spend the rest of eternity with her killer and a mad scientist.  

As Sephiroth became absorbed in his own thoughts he glanced over at Aeris. She looked almost pitiful with her eyes red and puffy from crying, her hair mussed from the wind, but she also looked beautiful.  Suddenly Sephiroth felt an overwhelming need to protect her, from Hojo and from the feeling of despair that she now appeared to be consumed with.

Gently he reached over and pulled one of her hands away from her face and held it in his own. Taking a deep breath to keep himself going, it was one of the hardest things he had ever done simply taking her hand in his.

"Aeris, you have me?" he hadn't meant it to sounds like a question but his nervousness betrayed him.  For moments he was unsure of how she reacted, he even began to sink down into self-despair thinking that she didn't care about him, even though he didn't know why it should matter what she thought about him. But, she looked up at him, blinking the tears out of her bleary eyes.  It seemed as if his kind gesture had actually made a difference.

"Oh Seph!" before he could react she had thrown her arms around his neck in a tight embrace. Caught off guard all he could do was awkwardly wrap his arms around him and return her embrace. As she slowly broke the embrace he looked down at her, it seemed as if she was feeling better but now that he knew how well she hid her emotions behind her façade of happiness, he couldn't quite be sure.  

Presently he found himself entranced with her eyes.  He couldn't tear his eyes away from hers. The way they shone with tears, the beautiful shade of emerald green. Slowly he began taking in her entire face. He had never noticed women much before, but now he noticed her, she was truly beautiful. The way all of her features fit perfectly together to create such an angelic beauty.  

He couldn't tell if she was leaning closer to him or if he was to her, but soon he found that their lips were almost touching. Her delicate hand had crept to his shoulder and around the back of his neck.  Still their eyes remained locked, as if neither knew what was happening. Then the two moved the fraction of the inch forward and found themselves locked in a gentle uncertain kiss as the waves crashed in the background.


	6. Reactions and Plans

**Chapter 6- **

              A gentle breeze caressed her skin as the sun peeked between the clouds to shine on where she was sitting. Aeris sat on the sand, her back to a log, grabbing handfuls of sand and then letting it slip between her fingers to the ground.  The way the sand felt fascinated her.  It wasn't too powdery and dry, but it wasn't rough or uncomfortable either.  Even though she never really been to a beach before, sure she had been on one but she had never actually gotten to sit on one and enjoy it, she knew sand was supposed to stick to you, but none of this did.  She laughed as she realized it was because she made it so it wouldn't, _it's all in my head._

            She let out a gentle sigh as she tilted her head back to allow the sun to shine on her face. A soft smile crept to her lips as she thought about the kiss she and Sephiroth had shared earlier. She couldn't help but muse about how her mood had changed from one of one so abject to one that was simply, content.  All of her worries seem completely over shadowed by that one simply interaction.  It was amazing how that moment of uncertain contact had affected her.

The sun shone down on her adding to her feeling of comfort and content.  She couldn't help but to yawn as she stretched. After her kiss with Sephiroth, just the casual thought brought a smile to her face, they had sat together watching the waves until she had fallen asleep.  Even though he had been out all night she had remained vigilant by his side. 

How long she had been asleep, Aeris had no idea, but sometime Sephiroth had gone off to somewhere leaving her alone.  She wasn't worried about him, he was used to being alone, so she let her thoughts drift to other things. After a while the soft crashing of waves and the warm sun caused her eyes to slide shut as she fell asleep.

************************************************************************

 Sephiroth sat just at the edge of the forest and sand.  He was hidden from Aeris' view but he could still see her, and quite clearly.  From the time after their kiss until she drifted asleep he had slowly been fill with an indescribable feeling.  He had begun to question what he was doing.  The feeling wasn't quite panic or fear, and it certainly wasn't' disgust.  But is had been so strong he had felt as if he had to get away, at any cost.

Now he found himself sitting away from her, but watching her every movement.  Why had he kissed her?  He had never behaved that way before with anyone. It was incomprehensible why he would do such a thing, he felt almost disgusted with what he had done; but at the same time he had enjoyed it.  The feeling of her lips had certainly been pleasant it gave him a rush to be so close to her.  

            She had smelled so sweet, her lips had felt so warn and soft.  She was the apotheosis of beauty. Then why did he feel so uncomfortable and awkward? The close contact felt so right, but at the same time wrong. It felt so strange to kiss a person when he couldn't remember hugging a single person while he lived.  His mind ran over his constantly switching emotion.

His attention was immediately drawn to Aeris when he saw her begin to awaken.  He was captivated by the way she moved the way she seemed to fit perfectly with the world around her.  A ray of sun had broken through the clouds to shine, it seemed, only her.  She only added to the beauty of the beach.   Her gentle laugh filled the air like a soothing song.  

He watched as a smile spread across her face.  Was she thinking of him?  Could it be that their kiss felt as good to her as it did him?  Sephiroth felt his heart beat faster at the thought.  _What is this I'm feeling?_   Filled with a sudden desire to be with her he rose and walked over to her.

By the time he reached her she had fallen back asleep.  _How odd, in a place where we do no need to do anything to stay alive, we still need to sleep. I suppose it had something to do with our minds._  He sat down beside her watching her.  She looked like an angel when she slept.  _How could I have killed her?_ Even thinking of what he had done to such a perfect creation made him shudder.  Did he even deserve to feel this way about her?  

Uncertainty clouded his thoughts as he looked down at her. What was making him feel this way about this girl?  Somehow he felt the need for her approval, he felt as though he had to make her approve of him.  But did it matter how they felt about each other? They were both stuck her for the rest of eternity.

************************************************************************

_Willpower, that's all this place is about.  He is stronger than me, I know it; after all I created him.  But her, she is weak; I can easily control her once he is out of the picture.  I will have to Sacrifice one subject for another; one is better than none._

Hojo's mind raced to come up with a plan.  He had figured out the workings of this world, and it was simple if you could think it you could do it.  The problem was, if someone else was nearby and didn't want it to happen it would go to whoever's mind was stronger.  He had applauded himself on his accurate analysis of this place; of course it was due to his scientific skills.

But now that he had this place figured out, he needed something to do.  Science had been his life; he had been dedicated to figuring out the mysteries of life. Now there was no life, only what he had created.  Then he had found two of his previous subjects.  His scientific mind screamed at him to capture the two and conduct scientific experiments on them to see what would happen, see how they would react in a world like this.  It doubtless would be different than on the planet.

_How could I distract the boy? What would he care enough about that I could take his attention away from me long enough that I could do away with him. Or can I even do away with him in a place like this? We'll just have to find out.  The girl! She is the key. I will do something with her that will preoccupy him with her.  While she captures his attention I will take care of him. _

 Hojo sneered as his self-proclaimed genius mind worked up one of his plans.


	7. Follow Me

**Chapter 7- Follow Me**

Aeris strolled idly along the narrow winding path that led through the forest.  Her left hand casually ran through her bangs, her right loosely held Sephiroth's.  The air felt so fresh and clean, like it always smells right after it rains. 

" So where did you say this forest was" Aeris asked Sephiroth as they strolled along the forest.

" A forest near Rocket town, how I remember it at least.  My troops and I had crossed through it after it had rained one day, for some reason the memory of it stood out in my mind when you asked me."

The two of them had taken to going on walks to entertain themselves.  Each day they would trade off on who created the area they walked on, the day before Aeris had chosen the area around her old house in the slums. While walking she pointed out where all the people she had known had lived.  When they crossed her church she had insisted upon showing him every inch of the place.

Whenever Sephiroth chose it would always be a place far away one that Aeris probably hadn't seen, as she had asked.  When they walked Aeris would always take in her surroundings with a certain amount of awe.  He loved to watch as her deep green eyes widened at the beautiful views from the tops of hills, how her breath would softly escape from her lungs at deep oranges of the sun setting over the oceans.  

But for both of them every time they took a walk their emotions were mixed with the thought of their inability to return to either the planet or life.  Sephiroth always found his recreations somewhat dimmed by time, never quite as he remembered them. Aeris fought against the memories of her past life that always came back to haunt her. Day in and day out they would both slowly walk hand in hand down the paths struggling against the overwhelming desire to leave the place they were trapped in.  

Tilting her head back and closing her eyes Aeris inhaled a deeply enjoying the delicate scent of the air, no noticing a stone in her path as she did so.  The toe of her boot caught on the stone causing her to stumble and fall flat on her face. As she turned over she found herself covered in the dark mud that made up the path.  Unconsciously she reached up the brushed the hair out of her face, leaving long streaks of mud along the side of her face.  With a frown on her face she looked up at Sephiroth who stood above her with a smirk firmly in place on his features.

" You know, that wouldn't have happened if you had thought about it _not_ happening."  He lectured, his smirk forming a half smile as she pouted.

"Sorry but I haven't mastered this whole place nearly as well has you have." Aeris said in an attempt to defend herself.

"Because you haven't tried. Do you need help up?" Sephiroth asked as he leaned forward.

A plan instantly came to Aeris' mind. " Yes", she said trying to sounds and look angry.

Sephiroth smirked slightly as he leaned forward and gave his hand out to Aeris.  She reached forward took his hand and pulled back with as much strength her body had to offer, willing just as strongly for him to fall face first right next to her.  Caught off guard, and surprisingly overpowered by her willpower Sephiroth found himself pulling himself up out of the mud and glaring at Aeris.

Aeris was laughing hysterically, her eyes were shut to hold back tears.   Sephiroth crawled over to her with the intention of rubbing mud in her hair for laughing at him.  But as he pinned her down she looked up at him, her beauty at that moment astounded him.  A bright smile still graced her features, the tears of laughter glistened in her eyes making them brighter than usual, her hair framed her heart shaped face perfectly.  He found himself staring at her gazing into her eyes.

Aeris found herself equally mesmerized by Sephiroth's appearance.  The feeling of him sitting so close to her his arm around her was so intoxicating.   She became aware of the sound of her racing heart and her every breath.   Every contact with him seemed to be magnified; she felt every strand of hair, every thread of fabric in his clothes, and every muscle beneath them.

As they gazed at each other something suddenly snapped.  Their lips met in a passionate kiss.  Everything seemed to disappear into that moment of passion; the ever-present cloud of depression seemed to clear for that one moment.  One kiss turned to another and another.  The hidden desire they had felt for one another realized with each kiss.  

Slowly, almost painfully, they slowly pulled away from one another. Aeris' eyes were lightly closed, as she would lose the moment if she opened her eyes.  A soft sigh escaped her lips as she leaned her head back and smiled.  When she opened her eyes and once again looked at him they found themselves staring again.  A feeling of content spread over the two for that one moment.

Eventually the moment faded away.  Leaving the two of them sitting in the mud with the despair slowly returning.  Aeris looked down at herself, finding that she was still covered in mud.  Next to her Sephiroth rose to his feet somehow his clothes were completely spotless.  

"It's not fair that you can do that and I can't," Aeris protested as Sephiroth helped her up.  He just shook his head allowing a faint smile onto his lips.  When she looked down her dress was as spotless as he was.  

"Thank you" Aeris said, feeling much better now that she wasn't coated in mud. "Well. Lets go!"  She hopped next to him and grasped his hand.

Sephiroth looked down at Aeris as they finished their walk.  Her naturally happy attitude always seemed to keep him away from that edge of despair that always loomed over the horizon in this odd afterlife.  The way that kiss had felt was unbelievable, yet, something had been off; as if that really wasn't how it was supposed to be.  He had never kissed a person before, and that's what he imagined it would be like, but something had been off, not quite real about it.  He supposed that was why that one moment of passion hadn't continued on to something more.  

What would it have felt like in the real world? In a place where you felt things and did not imagine or try and remember how they would feel.   Again that creeping desire to return built up. There had to be some way to get out of here.

"What are you thinking about?" Aeris questioned, an idle tone to her voice.

Sephiroth looked at her, he couldn't keep anything from her anymore.  No matter what he said she would know if it was the truth or not, it was as if some type of bond had formed between the two of them.

" About here, and how to get out", he felt bad for saying it as he watched her face fall slightly, " I was just thinking that there had to be a way out."

"Well tell me when get it K?" Aeris yawned, " I'm gonna go to sleep"

"I'll stay out here a bit longer" Sephiroth said as he turned his gaze to the stars above.

Aeris smiled at him, he looked so hansom and noble as he looked up at the stars.  She walked over to him and gave him a hug.

"Goodnight", She kissed him on the cheek and turned to go inside.  His eyes followed her to the door.  When she got halfway there she turned, the most beautiful smile he had ever seen in place on her lips.

"Love you," she said across the distance before lightly running the rest of the way inside.

Sephiroth contemplated what she had just said.  A smile came to his face as he returned his eyes to the stars.

************************************************************************

Aeris hummed to herself as she closed the door behind her.  Oh the feel of his lips, she brushed her fingers against hers.  She still couldn't belive she had kissed him like that.  She had never done that with Zack!

"Well look who's here", a sinister voice sounded from the corner.  A scream escaped from her as she swirled to where the voice was coming from.  Hojo sat in the corner away from the light in his classic lab coat.

"Just thought I'd pay you a visit my dear," he said as he jumped to his feet, catching Aeris by the arm before she could get back to the door.

" No no, not yet my dear. We can't have you calling your friend over before we're ready." 

Aeris struggled with all her might, using both mind and body, but he was too strong.  She instantly froze as she felt the touch of cold steel against her back.  

"We don't want to be able to actually put up a fight now do we?" Hojo whispered into her ear.

Pain exploded through her torso as a bullet tore through her delicate flesh.  The white-hot pain was blinding, she struggled to breath against it.  Hot tears welled up in her eyes as she looked down and saw the blood seeping through the hole in her stomach.  She felt her legs give out underneath her.

Hojo sneered as the Cetra went limp in his arms.  It was perfect; everything was going according to plan.  Sephiroth would doubtless be here in a moment.  _Ughh this building is bothering me._ The house disappeared.  Leaving Hojo holding the bleeding Aeris in the middle of the open plain and a stunned Sephiroth across from them. _Perfect_.

************************************************************************

A slow searing rage began to build in Sephiroth the instant her heard the gunshot.  Now he stood face to face with Hojo as he held the broken form of Aeris by the back of her dress with one arm.  Sephiroth whipped out Masamune and began charging at Hojo.

" Tisk tisk my boy, we wouldn't want to do that. STOP!"  Hojo ordered as he brought his gun up to Aeris' head.  He twisted her head around so that her eyes stared directly into Sephiroth's.  

" You wouldn't want me to have to hurt her again would you?" sneered Hojo, he could nearly taste the perfection in his plan.

Sephiroth stopped dead in his tracks.  He was trying everything he could to heal Aeris, but nothing was working, somehow Hojo was overpowering him.  He felt so helpless as he stood so close to them, yet he was unable to help her.

Hojo jerked her up to his eye level, "See you soon my dear", he fired another bullet into her chest and carelessly tossed her to Sephiroth.  Sephiroth caught her and gently laid her to the ground.  Her breaths were coming in ragged gasps now, yet somehow a smile was on her face. 

************************************************************************

From the instant she collapsed Aeris knew she had to ask for the planet's help.  She had been praying constantly since.  The planet had answered her with the way to kill Hojo, for good.  Now she lay in Sephiroth's arms.  She knew that somehow she could live, but then did she really want to live? The possibility of moving on to another place than this was much more enticing.  

She smiled as she looked up at Sephiroth, allowing her life to slip away; she could feel his attempts to cure her fail.  He would follow her and then they would be together in another place.  It all seemed to be perfect.  The thought crossed her mind that she was not thinking clearly, but everything seemed so right, how could it not be? She would leave this place, and then once Hojo was gone Sephiroth would be right behind her.  But what if she really couldn't die here?

************************************************************************

"Seph…I ", the pain forced her to stop for a moment, "I…know what to do"

"Don't worry about it, Aeris, you'll be better soon," an indescribable panic arose in him.  How could she go and leave him here alone? She couldn't die, could she? He didn't notice as she reached out and touched the side of his face.  An instant link formed and the knowledge the planet had given her was transferred to him.  Instantly he knew how to get rid of Hojo.   

"I love you, hurry up and follow me."  A peaceful smile spread across her face as he felt her presence slip away.  Soon he could no longer feel her.  A sudden feeling of emptiness engulfed Sephiroth. He felt chocked by it. The only person he had ever cared about like this was gone.  He found himself physically unable to draw a breath. 

"No Aeris, you can't do this to me", he hugged her lifeless form to his chest, bowing his head.  He felt so alone; he wouldn't be able to follow her. He could hardly die in real life, much less in a place like this. His mind was fogged by emotion, he couldn't think straight.

"She wasn't supposed to die", Hojo stated, as if this would make everything better.  

An inhumane rage instantly replaced his agony. Sephiroth looked up at Hojo, his green eyes burned like a fire.  Sword in hand he slowly approached Hojo.  Sadness was so easy to replace with anger; it was so easy to forget his pain when he concentrated on his rage.

Suddenly Hojo was filled with fear.  He could sense that Sephiroth knew something he didn't, that somehow Sephiroth was much more dangerous now than he had been moments before. As Sephiroth slowly advanced towards him he felt more and more like one of his subjects trapped in a cage.   He saw that Sephiroth had every intention of fighting, now there was nothing left to do but to see who was stronger. 

As they circled Hojo felt the air around Sephiroth begin to get hotter.  He could feel the rage that was building up. Their eyes locked for one moment before they made their moves. Hojo fired as Sephiroth lunged forward.


End file.
